The island belongs to the
Great Andaman Chain, and with an area of it is one of the main
islands of the group, a closely set
archipelago in the
Bay of Bengal, adjoining the
Andaman Sea.
Middle Andaman is to its north, and
South Andaman to the south. Beaches, mangrove creeks,
limestone caves, and
mud volcanoes are some of the physical features. The islands of
Ritchie's Archipelago lie to the east.
Port Blair, the capital of the Indian
Union Territory of
Andaman and Nicobar Islands, is located approximately from the southern tip of Baratang. Baratang contains the only known examples of
mud volcanoes in India. These mud volcanoes have erupted sporadically, with recent eruptions in 2005 believed to have been associated with the
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. The previous major eruption recorded was on 18 February 2003. The locals call this mud volcano
jalki. There are other volcanoes in the area, the
Barren Island volcano which is the only
active volcano in
South Asia, and the
Narcondum volcano which has been classified as a dormant volcano by the
Geological Survey of India. ==Administration==